Bank of America Charitable Foundations contributes $25,000 to provide more food
The Food Bank is excited to announced that we have received a $25,000 grant award from Bank of America Charitable Foundation to support the distribution of more emergency food throughout the four counties of western Massachusetts.
The grant will allow The Food Bank to achieve our goal of distributing 10.8 million pounds of healthy food this year to food insecure households in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties. The food will be distributed through our 200 member agencies (comprised of food pantries, meal programs, community centers and shelters). We also provide assistance to individuals facing hunger through our direct-to-client feeding programs, which include the Mobile Food Bank, and Brown Bag: Food for Elders.
Volunteers prepare bags of food to be distributed to area seniors in Pittsfield, as part of The Food Bank’s Brown Bag: Food for Elders program.
“We are very grateful for this generous contribution from Bank of America Charitable Foundation,” says The Food Bank’s Executive Director Andrew Morehouse. “It is through these strong partnerships that we can continue to be a reliable resource for our neighbors who may not know where their next meal is coming from.”
Bank of America strives to focus on the economic mobility of individuals and families by addressing basic needs, which includes the fight against hunger. The Food Bank’s partnership with Bank of America Charitable Foundation will provide approximately 75,000 meals this year.
The need for emergency food in our region remains high. Last year, The Food Bank distributed more than 10.6 million pounds of food — the equivalent of 8.8 million meals. Of those pounds, 27% were fresh fruits and vegetables. Currently, more than 223,000 people throughout western Massachusetts rely on the services of The Food Bank and our member agencies (30% are kids under the age of 18, and 14% are seniors over the age of 65).